Method of Construction

Constructed by: Elaine Totman, ACA, and Liz Tuohy-Sheen, '97

The threads of this screw were turned from solid brass on a
lathe. Two box-shaped pans were formed by folding copper sheeting
and soldering the edges. A pivot point for the bottom end of the
screw to rest on was turned on a lathe and soldered into the base
of one of the pans, which were then placed side-by-side, one
higher than the other by about three inches. The pan with the
pivot point is the lower box, and the point angles upward at
approximately forty degrees. A length of copper tubing joins the
two pans and provides a way for water to be conserved in the
system. The screw rests on the pivot point in the lower pan and
is supported at the upper pan by a frame. It is covered in clear
plastic to make visible the process by which the water travels up
the threads, and a small brass crank was soldered to the top so
the screw would be easier to turn.